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Entrepreneurship for Engineers
This summer course is designed to equip aspiring scientists, engineers or working professionals with the essential knowledge and skills of business and entrepreneurship in the age of digitalisation and artificial intelligence.
Teaching period:
-
Application period:
1.2.2024 – 31.5.2024
Course format:
Campus
Duration:
2 weeks
full-time
Course level:
Graduate
Doctoral
Professional
Field of study:
Entrepreneurship
Credits:
5 ECTS
Organiser:
Aalto University
Tuition fees:
1490€ tuition fee
Entrepreneurship for Engineers equips aspiring innovators with the essential skills and knowledge needed to thrive in today's competitive business landscape.
Whether you're a seasoned engineer looking to launch your own startup or a student eager to explore the intersection of technology and entrepreneurship, this course offers a comprehensive exploration of key concepts, such as investments, product, service, customer, traction, profit, expense, revenue, taxes, equity, assets, and methods for business strategy and financial modelling. The course also covers frameworks like lean engineering, agile and waterfall project development, co-creation models, and design thinking in the context of digital innovation.
Pitching and hands-on learning environments
Through interactive workshops with guided hands-on exercises and individual or group project work, students will discover how to conceptualise business ideas based on digital technology, build a mock-up or prototype, and scale their product towards a profitable solution. The course culminates with a demo event where all the projects are presented during a realistic business pitching scenario.
Information for Summer School Applicants
Pre-work
Individual, asynchronous pre-course assignment
Lecture weeks on campus: July 8th to 19th, 2024
Lectures, workshops, facilitated and independent project work
Post-work
Asynchronous post-course assignment
After the course, students will be able to:
- Apply various tools, such as business canvases and pattern cards, to conceptualize a realistic solution and value proposition.
- Evaluate the value chains of one’s own digital solution in relation to the domain context and create a viable business model.
- Apply a question-driven consultative sales technique to conduct customer discovery and prototype validation for innovative solutions.
- Critically analyze information to distil useful and actionable insights amidst abstract theories and cases related to entrepreneurship.
- Apply knowledge of finance to developmental actions relevant to own business.
- Create optimal visual presentations and apply speaking practice techniques for various communication scenarios in business.
The teaching and working methods include:
- Modular lectures alternating with exercises rooted in real-world scenarios, for maximum retention and high-fidelity outputs.
- Facilitated group work for brainstorming, knowledge sharing, and peer-evaluation, for interactive learning and co-creation with peers.
- Individual in-depth study for readings, analyses, and business concept developments, for fostering confidence and independent critical thinking without group influence.
The total course workload of 135h (5 ECTS) consists of
Pre-reading and research 35h
Contact lectures and workshops 40h
Project work 35h
Post assignment and reflection 25h
The course is graded as pass/fail.
The minimum requirement for applying to Entrepreneurship for Engineers is a finished bachelor's degree in a scientific, technical, or architectural field, or the equivalent of 180 ECTS completed in the undergraduate degree.
Prepare to attach the following to your application:
- CV or LinkedIn profile
- Motivation letter
The recommended length for the motivation letter is 150-250 words. Please answer the following questions in the motivation letter:
- Are you interested in starting and running a business in the future? If so, how would it contribute to your career plans?
- Would you run it in Finland? If so, what makes it an appealing place to do so?
- How do you think this summer school can contribute to your future career or vision that other sources of knowledge (e.g. books, courses, YouTube, etc.) could not?
If you need a visa, we recommend applying by April 15th 2024.
- This is to ensure that we have enough time to process your application and that you have time to make the tuition fee payment, book a visa appointment and wait for the application to be processed.
- You can apply and be accepted to the courses after April 15th. In that case, we recommend that you pay at your earliest convenience so that we can deliver your invitation letter to you promptly.
- According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland, the processing time for a visa application is 15 days. However, the processing time may be longer if a more detailed application examination is required.
Tuition fee
The tuition fee is 1490€ (including VAT 24%). The tuition fee is to be paid by credit card or a Finnish online bank. If the fee is not paid by the due date, the application will be considered lapsed.
Reduced tuition fee (-20%) for students from partner institutions of Aalto University. Please prepare to prove your student status with a study transcript before paying the tuition fee.
Unfortunately, Aalto University Summer School does not offer scholarships for participants.
- Pre-work: personal motivations, readings, and business idea
- Active course participation
- Pitching scripts and speaking practices
- Justification for business strategy decisions
- Business slide deck and presentation
- Post-work: Business description/plan and market analysis
Learn about the Aalto University Summer School cancellation terms. You will receive the full terms before making the payment and confirming the course participation.
Entrepreneurship skills that matter
This course will teach students how to communicate appropriately, how to craft impactful messages that everyone can understand, and speak so that people will listen. These are captured in the activities of pitching and storytelling within the course.
The course is for everyone who wants to learn how to:
- Build a digital prototype within a week and scale towards a profitable solution.
- Kickstart your business without investments.
- Sell innovative solutions in a conservative field.
- Speak to inspire and activate your listeners.
- Decide on the best way to grow your business.
- Assess what sources of money to prioritise.
- Ask questions to create value in all scenarios.
- Navigate intellectual property rights (IPR), licensing and related income models.
Teacher Information
Vincent Kuo (DSc Tech), is a Taiwanese-born South African researcher and entrepreneur based in Finland. Vincent has worked in structural- and infrastructure engineering as a Master of Science in construction engineering management. His doctoral research, completed 2019 at Aalto University, focused on natural language processing algorithms for knowledge management in traditional engineering industries such as construction, nuclear and marine.
He founded VXT Research Ltd in 2017, a specialist software company creating customized artificial intelligence solutions for government and enterprise applications, operating presently.
Apurva Ganoo is a doctoral candidate in management and entrepreneurship at Aalto University School of Business, and was appointed permanent Lecturer in Entrepreneurship at Aalto University in 2023. He is originally from India, but has lived most of his life in Finland and Malaysia.
Ganoo is involved in developing the new, upcoming Master’s program in Sustainable Entrepreneurship in collaboration with Aalto Ventures Program (AVP) and the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management.
Contact
Summer School team
Graduate Summer School application (external link)
Use this form to apply to Aalto University Summer School graduate courses
Graduate summer courses
We offer multidisciplinary academic summer courses for students and professionals with completed undergraduate degrees.
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